CLOSING police stations and selling them off will leave people feeling “angry and vulnerable”, it has been claimed.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan’s proposals to shut and sell off Woodford police station, Woodford Bridge High Road, as part of proposals to axe £400 million over the next four years have been condemned.

The enormous cuts, which would also see the front counter at Barkingside police station close and Ilford made the borough’s 24/7 frontline counter, were announced by the Mayor’s Office for Crime and Policing in July.

Liberal Democrat Councillor Gwyneth Deakins, who serves the Roding ward, fears it would leave people feeling uncertain about their community’s future.

“What people feel in this area is as though unaccountable organisations are abandoning them. People do feel angry and a bit vulnerable because they think ‘what’s going to go next?’ “I am very angry at the possibility of the closure. I think this measure will waste a lot of police resources because officers are going to spend their time not doing their job.

“It does make me feel that the fight against crime will be worse in the long run. It’s counter-productive and short-sighted.”

She added that closure would damage the fight against crime in the area in the long run.

“If the station closes and is sold off, that’s it, it’s gone. If someone wants to have a base in Woodford in the future then it’s too late,” she added.

The front counter at Woodford station closed in the 2013 round of cuts. It is now used as a base for safer neighbourhood teams in the west of the borough.

Cllr Deakins warned that making Ilford the borough’s 24/7 front counter service would mean officers spend less doing their jobs.

“If it closes, they teams will have to travel further, spending a considerable amount of time every day travelling instead of being on the beat.

“It’s good for day-to-day interactions with the police. The police station in Ilford is not easy to access if you are disabled.

If you sell that plot of land for a block of flats, you could make a bit of money, so there is that temptation. This is a public service, not an estate agency, and they need to think more about that,” she added.

Mr Khan said: “My top priority is keeping Londoners safe, and I have been clear that the huge Government cuts to the Metropolitan Police Service have left us with no choice but to take drastic action to protect the frontline of policing.

“We are doing everything we can to maintain the best possible service for Londoners, but the Met budget is at a cliff-edge and I continue to call on the Government to take urgent action and properly fund our police service so they can do their job and keep Londoners safe.”

The Liberal Democrats’ motion to oppose the closure and sale of Woodford police station and closure of Barkingside’s front counter was approved in council on Thursday, September 14.

The consultation ends on Friday, October 6.

To view the consultation document, click here.